Long week-- hubby was in the hospital

Last time I wrote the kids were off to school and I was hoping to get into some kind of routine. Well, we all need to remember that we plan and then God laughs and things go way different than you thought. That is exactly what happened this week. 

First a back story... about 3 months ago (in June) Bill started experiencing some discomfort and pain near his stomach and in the same area that he used to have gall bladder pain. To the doctor he went and after some x-rays they told him that since it had been 10 years since he had his gall bladder out it wasn't connected to that, that he had an ulcer, gave him acid reducing meds and told him to make an appointment with a gastroentrologist. He called for an appointment and the first appointment available was for Sept. 5.

A couple weeks ago, he was back at the ER with similar pains. They told him it was an ulcer, gave him acid reducing meds, and told him to see a gastroentrologist.  

Fast forward to last week. Bill was EXTREMELY tired all week. He had barely any energy and just felt like crap. On Saturday he woke up and was in extreme pain and went to the emergency room. Again, they did a cat scan, x-rays and blood work... told him it was an ulcer and to see a gastroentrologist. The only thing they did different was to check his liver as his bilirubin numbers had skyrocketed since their last check 3 months ago when he was in the ER, but they couldn't see anything wrong with the liver. They told him to come back if his symptoms worsened or he developed a fever. 

Sunday, he spent most of the day in bed. 

Monday morning he woke up with a fever of 100.4. So back to the ER at 9AM. It took them 3 hours to even get to him and then he was there getting blood work, fluids, cat scan, xrays, etc. until they finally decided to admit him at 5:30PM. The gastroentrologist came to the ER to see him and diagnosed him with a suspected blockage of his bile duct which was causing the liver issues. They wanted to do another MRI type test on Tuesday to confirm. 

Tuesday he had the MRI test in the morning and it confirmed that there was a stone blocking the bile duct completely.Oh and there was NO ulcer or evidence that there ever was one! The recommended treatment for this blockage was a procedure called a ERCP, where they put a wire down Bill's throat and balloon the area to open up and let the stone pass through. Around 2pm, the gastroentrologist came in to talk to Bill about the procedure and that they would put him in a deep sleep (since that was the hospital's policy) and that if he agreed then the operating room was waiting on them right then. I had to leave to go get the kids from school, and the doctor said he wouldn't need to speak to me after unless there was a problem. This was supposed to be a 30 minute procedure.  Well, we got back around 4 and Bill was not in his room yet. The nurse told me that Bill was coming back from recovery and the doctor wanted to talk to me. Crap. Basically, the procedure was not a success. They couldn't get to the blockage due to sludge in Bill's duct and his muscles kept spasming around the wire tube. After 30 minutes Bill's oxygen level started dropping rapidly so they called the surgery. He wanted to try again the next day under general anaesthesia. 

So Wednesday, Bill underwent the procedure again under general anesthesia. Thankfully this time the procedure went okay. It took about an hour. The gastroentrologist said that he found a 6mm fragmented piece of a stone that was stuck in the duct completely allowing no bile to move, etc. He considered the surgery a success and saw no reason Bill couldn't go home that afternoon, but that the ultimate decision was up to the doc that was in charge of the floor Bill was on because that was the hospital's policy. 

To keep this already long entry a little shorter, the doc on the floor didn't want Bill to go home. He said that is was because his blood numbers hadn't improved that morning and that he needed more blood work in the morning. Well that was a lie because no blood had been taken that morning because they tried in 4 different spots and his veins kept collapsing because he was dehydrated. Also he hadn't had the procedure yet so of course numbers wouldn't have had improved. There was some other issues-- including him contradicting what I had been told by the surgeon after Bill's surgery, that they didn't know if the blocked duct was the issue, that he thought Bill could go home, etc. Add in the fact that Bill wasn't given his blood pressure or depression meds the day before (that he takes daily) and some other issues Bill asked to be let go AMA (against medical advice). He came home that night. 

He is doing okay. He is dealing with some excess gas and aftereffects of the anesthesia. He has a followup with his gastroentrologist next week (the originally scheduled appointment for a non-existent ulcer). Thankfully, he said the pain that he was feeling when he breathed deep, ate, moved etc. is gone! So now hopefully he is on the road to full recovery. 

Back to school for the kiddos

It seems like August is flying by. One good thing though about this month is that the kids go back to school and we can *hopefully* get into some sort of routine. I surely hope so. 

Yesterday was back to school for the boys! Jacob started 4th grade and Benjamin is in 2nd. They both met their teachers on Monday night and were really looking forward to going to school. 

This morning, Rebecca went back to school. She is in 7th grade! Here the middle school has the 6th graders come on the first day to get acclimated to the building, etc. and then everyone comes on day 2. She was really looking forward to going to school as well! 

Here's hoping and praying that they each have a great school year and learn a lot and make lots of friends! 

Playing in the rain, cooking and an uneventful week

This past week has been kind of uneventful. We really haven't had a lot going on, which has been good since school starts back next week. 

One thing I did do this week was I played in the rain. We had a pouring rain the other day and Rebecca and Bill said they didn't think I would go out and run around in it. I had to prove them wrong ;) It was a nice warm rain so it felt good. I hadn't done something like that since I was a kid. LOL And of course since I did it, everyone else had to too! LOL  

I've done some cooking. The same day it poured rain, I was craving chili. So made some and made grilled cheese sandwiches with marked down Italian bread I had in the freezer. SO good, (even though I usually don't make it in the summer since I think of it as a fall food)!  I have also been making a batch of sautéed sweet potatoes, onions and zucchini that I have been eating with eggs in the morning. Again, super yummy! 

I cleaned out the freezer. I took the kids to get a new back-to-school outfit for next week. I have been cleaning. I tackled our bedroom yesterday. It looks a ton better. I didn't take any pictures but it had gotten way out of control. I tutored one kiddo, and had another one no-show. I babysat. Just another normal week around here. 

Today, I am working on laundry. I am also going to set up my desk for the new school year (get folders ready for the kids' stuff, etc.). I am also going to label and sort all the school supplies for the kids so those are ready to go next week. 

What are your plans for today? Anything exciting going on? 

Butterflies!

Friday, Rebecca went over to a friend's house. I took Bill and the kids to the Brown Family Environmental Center for a picnic and to walk around before we headed to pick her up. At the center all of their wildflowers were in bloom and there were a ton of butterflies! I took some photos with my phone and thought I would share them here. Hope you enjoy!

Have a great Sunday! 

The Lion King Movie and bike riding

This past week was kind of low key around here. We did end up taking the kids the see the new "The Lion King" movie on Tuesday at the movie theater.

The kids all loved it and I gave it an "A" grade. I thought some of the added banter between Timon and Pumba was great. The kids really enjoyed it and it was another item marked off from our summer list. Only a week and a half until school starts back so I am trying to make sure we have some fun things to do. 

When we came out of the movie, the weather outside was bad (in the midst of a severe thunderstorm) so we hung out in the movie theater lobby. Bill showed the boys how to play a video game and Rebecca wanted me to take her picture in front of a display for a new movie. LOL 

This morning, Rebecca spent time with my dad learning to ride a bike. Yes, I am feeling like a bad mom because she has never learned. I haven't ridden in years and Bill never learned to ride one. My dad spent the morning with her and taught her. She was so proud. Now I just need to keep my eye out for a good bike for her. 

Other than that I have been doing laundry and putzing around. This the first Saturday in a long time that I haven't had things planned. Feels kind of strange. Oh, well. I will take advantage of it. Hope everyone has a good one! 

Fun summer day at the Columbus Zoo

On Saturday, we went to Columbus for a family day. We went to the Columbus Zoo. It was sunny, hot and perfect weather for the zoo. The kids loved all the animals.

We always end up at the flamingos first. Notice the flamingo with the cast and fake leg. I love the work that the zoo does for the animals. 

This manatee is Stubby. She weighs over 2000 lbs. You can't see in the photo but she is missing most of her tail fin.

They even loved riding the Dinosaur ride (where you ride in a boat down a stream and they have dinosaurs along the ride.). Benjamin said that the dinosaur ride was his favorite part.

Rebecca and Benjamin touched a snake- Jacob didn't want any part of it. He was a smart kid! LOL

When we left the zoo, we decided to stop at Wendy's for Frostys before we headed home for the day. 

It was all in all a perfect summer day! 

I turned 40 last Sunday!

Last week, I spent much of the week dealing with tooth pain and getting my tooth pulled. I gave myself the birthday present of getting my tooth pulled last Thursday, 3 days before my birthday! LOL. 

That is right I was turning 40 years old last Sunday (July 28). To celebrate, we planned on doing a camp out at my parent's house on Friday night to Saturday. This would be our 2nd annual Rachel's birthday camp out. (The attendees at this year's camp out where me, Bill, our kiddos, my mom, my dad, my sister, my brother Joe, my niece, and my nephew. The only one missing was my youngest brother Josh, who was attending his first concert in Columbus that night.) 

Even though I was in mouth pain, we decided to go ahead and do it. So we headed out to camp.

The kids had a blast playing with $1 badminton rackets I bought at Dollar Tree. 

My mom cooked out. I was able to eat a hamburger with really tiny bites and some baked beans and macaroni salad.

My sister made me a cake and decorated it herself. (Since I am usually the one to decorate the family cakes, I usually get a Kroger cake, so this was a nice, unexpected surprise). 

My niece made me some coconut bars that were really sweet but yummy. 

Everyone sang me happy birthday and I blew out all the candles on the cake! (We ended up doing the cake inside as it was really dark out!)

We had a fire and the kids made s'mores. 

Rebecca and Ben ended up sleeping out under the stars. Jacob got eaten up by mosquitoes even though I put repellent on him. 

It was a fun evening and a great way to start the birthday festivities.

Saturday, I ended up taking Rebecca to Staples to help a friend face paint at a back to school party for the community. I ended up staying and chatting with my friend the entire time. 

That night I made baked pasta with shredded chicken, low sodium sauce, and mozzarella for dinner. 

Sunday, started with a search for hearts around our house. Bill had placed 40 hearts around, some with a note with 40 things about me, etc. That was a nice way to start the day. Then it was off to church. After church, Rebecca and I headed to Walmart to get a tote for sleeping bags. 

Then honestly, the afternoon was not a good time. I got mad because nothing was being done for my birthday (no plans had been made and that made me ticked as I try to make others' birthday extra special) and I was in mouth pain (but couldn't take my pain meds because they gave me a bad headache). I went to bed ticked off and slept for a couple hours. 

Bill and the kids did take me to dinner at Bob Evans, since they knew I could get soft food there. I ended up with turkey and mashed potatoes. 

After Bill went to work, my friend and her kiddos stopped by with flowers and chocolate to wish me happy birthday. 

Because I had napped and I was mad, I ended up staying up until almost 5am the next morning binge watching "Last Man Standing" on Hulu. Bill came home from work and we talked and I got some things off my chest.

So while it wasn't my best birthday ever, overall it was a good weekend and I will never forget turning 40.